ABSTRACT
This chapter concerns newborn and premature infant pain and its noninvasive means of reduction. Its basic tenet is that, even before birth, humans and other mammals have available well-developed central and peripheral nociceptive mechanisms that, because of expanded sensory fields, may actually be more sensitive to the effects of tissue damage than adult systems (Fitzgerald, 1995). Infant pain and its amelioration are clinical issues of the first rank, because nociceptive-induced stress experienced during and following a procedure markedly influences recovery from the procedure (Anand & Hickey, 1992; Anand, Sippell, & Aynsley-Green, 1987). Moreover, painful infant experiences can be remembered (Taddio, Goldbach, Ipp, Steven, & Koran, 1995) and may thereby influence perceptions of and reactions to future nociceptive events.
